The Israeli Executive has stated this Tuesday that its forces have killed the secretary of Iran's Supreme National Security Council, Ali Larijani, as well as the top official of the Basij paramilitary militia, Gholamreza Soleimani, during the bombings carried out against Iranian territory within the framework of the surprise offensive launched on February 28 together with the United States against the Asian country.
“Lariyani and the Basij commander were eliminated last night and have joined in the depths of hell (Iran's deceased supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali) Jamenei, head of the annihilation program, along with those eliminated in the axis of evil,” said the Israeli Defense Minister, Israel Katz, according to a message published by his office.
Similarly, he has pointed out that both he and the prime minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, have ordered the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) “continue pursuing the leadership of the regime of terror and oppression in Iran” and “repeatedly cut off the octopus's head and prevent it from growing back.” “The IDF will continue to operate in Iran with great intensity, attacking regime assets, eliminating missile launch capabilities, and destroying key strategic infrastructure in all fields, making Iran take several decades back,” he maintained.
“The (Iranian) annihilation program is being destroyed and its leaders and capabilities are being neutralized,” Katz pointed out, who highlighted that “US President (Donald) Trump spoke about the high rate of change in the leadership in Iran.” “When dawn breaks in Washington, we will update you on the continuation and even acceleration of these changes with the elimination of two of its highest-ranking figures,” he applauded.
A little earlier, the Israeli Army had communicated Soleimani's death, specifying that he died in an air attack carried out on Monday against Tehran, the Iranian capital. “Under Soleimani, the Basij unit led the main repressive operations in Iran, employing violence, widespread arrests and force against protesters,” it highlighted.
The Israeli armed forces have also claimed new airstrikes carried out on Monday over Iranian territory. “The IDF continues to deepen the damage to all capabilities and assets of the Iranian terrorist regime,” they stressed, detailing that “dozens of planes” intervened in “an extensive attack mission” against Iran.
“Dozens of munitions were launched in Tehran against command and storage centers for drones, ballistic missiles, and air defense systems,” they have indicated, before remarking that among the targets hit are facilities of the Ministry of Intelligence and of the Basij paramilitary force.
Likewise, they have stressed that infrastructures of the “command center of the internal security forces” and “a ballistic missile warehouse” in Shiraz were also hit, while in Yabriz it “dismantled additional air defense systems, expanding air superiority in the region and protecting Israel.”
For the moment, Iranian authorities have not ratified the death of Lariyani nor that of Soleimani. On Lariyani's social media account, a handwritten letter signed by him has been disseminated, after Katz's announcement, in memory of those killed in the American attack with the frigate “Dena” off Sri Lanka, although the text does not mention the recent bombings, so it does not clarify if he is still alive.
Lariyani served as security advisor to Jamenei, assassinated on February 28 in the early phases of the joint offensive by the United States and Israel, and was considered one of the most influential figures in the Iranian leadership, now headed by Mojtaba Jamenei, appointed on March 8 as the country's new supreme leader.
Israel speaks of “significant achievements”
For his part, the head of the Israeli General Staff, Eyal Zamir, stressed this Tuesday that his troops have achieved “significant achievements in elimination operations during the last night,” without specifying identities. “This has the potential to impact the achievements of the campaign and the missions of the IDF,” he highlighted.
Zamir has added that “this adds to the anti-terrorist operations carried out during recent days against foreign elements, also some linked to the Palestinian sphere.” “Among other things, high-ranking officials involved in terrorist activities from Gaza and Judea and Samaria --biblical name for the West Bank-- who were hiding in a safe house were hit in Tehran,” he pointed out.
“The IDF continues to operate with vigor against targets in Iran. Along with the damage and erosion of military and industrial production capabilities, we operate against elements of the Revolutionary Guard and the repressive regime,” he argued, before stating that the offensive against Lebanon “is another important area of activities” and highlighting the “joint” actions with the United States.
Iranian authorities have put the number of dead in their latest balance at more than 1,200 due to the military campaign by Israel and the United States, while the NGO Human Rights Activists in Iran, based in US territory, raised the death toll on Sunday to more than 3,000, mostly civilians.
The offensive was unleashed in the midst of a process of conversations between Washington and Tehran to try to close a new nuclear pact, a context that has led Iran to respond with attacks against Israeli soil and against American interests in the Middle East, including military bases in the region.